Computer-mediated Course Research Articles

The relationship between teacher immediacy, perceptions of learning, and computer-mediated graduate course outcomes among primarily Asian international students enrolled in an U.S. university

This study employed a correlational research design to determine if a relationship existed between international students’ perceptions of teacher immediacy and students’ end of course grades in computer-mediated, U.S. graduate courses. Analysis demonstrated a statistically significant negative relationship between teacher immediacy and end of course grades, thus indicating that higher scores on the teacher immediacy scale relate to lower end of course grades. These findings are contrary to previous research findings with U.S. students engaging in computer-mediated courses, thus demonstrating the unique characteristics and needs of international students. Findings hold important implications to the design and delivery of graduate level courses for the international student population and reiterate the need for further investigation regarding the international student experience in U.S. higher education.

Maintaining Pedagogical Integrity of a Computer Mediated Course Delivery in Social Foundations

Distance learning has become increasingly popular among higher learning institutions, and more academic disciplines, such as mathematics, are now being offered at a distance. This experimental study investigated whether an objectivist-based teaching strategy or a constructivist-based teaching strategy yields greater achievement scores for adult students learning mathematics at a distance. A pretest-posttest control-group design was used, with a sample of 35 students. Two researcher-made test instruments, consisting of multiple-choice and brief constructed response/extended constructed response (BRC/ECR) items, were used to measure students’ understanding of mathematics topics both before and after the teaching intervention. While the results of t-tests and ANCOVA showed no statistically significant difference in achievement scores between the groups, the findings indicate that both teaching strategies are viable in the distance learning mathematics classroom.

LSA-Based Feedback for Assessing Student Learning in IT-Enabled IR Courses

This paper reports on the possibility of using a variation of the Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA) method to support learning assessment in computer-mediated courses in the International Relations program at the American University of Kuwait (AUK). LSA is a mathematical/statistical technique for extracting and inferring relations of expected usage of words (such as any digital text created by students) after their interaction with digital information (such as e-readings, videos, blogs, and lectures provided by the Professor). We propose using a variant of the LSA method to assess student computer-mediated note taking. Much of the learning that inspires this experiment is based on two projects. The first initiative involved using semantic databases to deliver two courses in the Department of Political Studies at the American University of Beirut (AUB) in Fall 2003 and Spring 2004. The second project involved delivering four consecutive introductory courses on International Relations in the Department of International Relations at AUK from Fall, 2010 to Fall, 2012. Both projects endeavored to combine teaching and technology in ways that promoted critical thinking, reading and writing, effective communication and problem solving.

The effect of using an online-based course on the learning of grammar inductively and deductively

AbstractThis study aims at exploring the effectiveness of using an online-based course on the learning of sentence types inductively and deductively. To achieve this purpose, a computer-mediated course was designed. The sample of the study consists of four groups taught under four treatments of grammar: (1) with computer-based learning inductively, (2) with computer-based learning deductively, (3) with non-computer-based learning inductively, and (4) with non-computer-based learning deductively. A pre-test/post-test design (between-subject) is used to investigate the effect of two factors: method (computer-based learning vs. non-computer-based learning) and technique (induction vs. deduction) on the students’ learning of sentence types. The results reveal a new manner of enhancing grammar learning based on the level of language structure complexity. The computer-based learning method is found to be functional for more complex and elaborate structures, like the complex sentence and compound complex sentence, and more complicated grammar structures need to be taught by means of the deductive technique. None of the inductive and deductive techniques is reported to be more practical with simple grammar structures such as the simple sentence and compound sentence.

Book Review: Building Learning Communities in Cyberspace: Effective Strategies for the Online Classroom

Building Learning Communities in Cyberspace: Effective Strategies for the Online Classroom by Rena M. Palloff and Keith Pratt. Jossey-- Bass Publishing, San Francisco, California. 1999, 206 pages, $29.95, Paper. ISBN 0-7879-4460-2. Reviewed by David L. Dollar. The authors of Building Learning Communities in Cyberspace: Effective Strategies for the Online Classroom explore the benefits, problems, and concerns inherent in computer-mediated distance education. As academic institutions move rapidly toward using the Internet to offer courses and programs, they subsequently create virtual universities; instructors must be trained and supported as they move into this technology-driven arena. With this book, Palloff and Pratt make a significant contribution to the discussions and struggles that frame this transition. Their practical and useful guide is designed for faculty who currently teach on-line and wish to discover new ideas to incorporate into their practice. It is equally useful, however, for instructors who are embarking on this journey. Other higher education professionals who will likewise find this book useful are department chairs and deans responsible for developing and delivering on-line offerings, those responsible for faculty and instructional development, and designers who are working with faculty and staff as they make the transition to on-line work. Based on their many years of work in information systems and over five years of experience in on-line distance education, Rena M. Palloff and Keith Pratt share insights designed to guide readers through the steps of computer-mediated course design and implementation. Palloff and Pratt are managing partners in Crossroads Consulting Group; in addition, they actively teach well-planned and effective computer-mediated distance education courses. Palloff is an adjunct professor at John F. Kennedy University and the Fielding Institute, both located in California. Pratt serves as an assistant professor and chair of the Management Information Systems program at Ottawa University in Ottawa, Kansas. This outstanding book is divided into two parts. Part One lays the foundation for a distance education framework. Chapter 1 explores the issues involved in teaching and learning when learning takes place outside the classroom and occurs instead in an on-line environment. Key factors in the distance learning process include interactions among students, interactions between faculty and students, and the collaborative learning that results from these interactions. The formation of a learning community wherein knowledge is imparted and meaning is co-created sets the stage for successful learning outcomes. Chapter 2 outlines the process of building a community in an on-line environment. In order for the learning process to be successful in distance education, attention must be paid to the developing sense of community within the group of participants. Community is the essence of these authors' distance education framework. In this chapter, they differentiate for readers between a traditional model of pedagogy and a model that will lead to success in the electronic classroom. Chapter 3 explores in more detail the key issues that need to be addressed by educators striving to build effective learning communities while delivering classes on-line. These issues include virtual versus human contact, connectedness, and coalescence. Additional issues explored by Palloff and Pratt are shared responsibility, rules, roles, norms, and participation. The chapter concludes with an interesting account of psychological and spiritual issues, including discussions regarding vulnerability, privacy, and ethics as they relate to distance education. …